Insole.



F, R. KEHH.

INSLE.

APPLICATSON FILED MAYS. 191?.

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STATES PATENT OFFICE;

FREDERICK R. KEITH, OF RANDOLPH, MASSACHUSETTS.

1 .msoLia To all whom t may concern.' i

Be it known that I, FREDERroK R. KEITH,

a citizen of the United States, residing atY Randolph, county of Norfolk, State ,of

Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Insoles, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawing, is a specification, like characters on the drawing representing like parts. Y

This invention relates to insoles such as are used in the manufacture of welt shoes, and the object of the invention is to provide a novel insole which is made of leatherboard treated in such a way as to toughen and water-proof it. The material known to the trade as leather-board is more or less spongy in character and can easily be torn or split in a plane parallel to the surface thereof. F or this reason it is not suitable to be used in its natural condition for insole material. One vof the requisites of an insole for a welt shoe is that the inseamreceiving rib shall have sufficient strength to hold the insteain stitches and shall be so formed that it will not be readily torn from the body of the insole. I have provided herein a novel insole which is made of leather-board that is treated in such a way that it will have toughness and strength which are required of an insole.

In order to give an understanding of my invention, I have illustrated in the drawing a selected embodiment thereof which will now be described, after which the novel features will be pointed out in the appended claim.

Figure l is a perspective view of an insole embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section through the leatherboard member of the insole showing it after it has been channeled;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view through the completed insole on the line 3-3, Fig. l.

My improved insole comprises the body member l of leather-board which is treated as hereinafter described to render it tough and water-proof, and which is channeled at its edges to form the upturned lip 2. The face of the inner sole is covered with a layer 3 of canvas, duck or similar material, which layer is secured to the face of the body l by suitable adhesive and which is caused to embrace the upturned lip 2 and preferably to cover the feather edge 4. The canvas 3 forms a reinforcing layer which gives rein- Spcifcatn of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 18V, 1,919.y

y, Application ledrMay 5, 1917. Serial No. 166,589.

forcement not only to the body of the insole,

but also to the upturned lip. The rib 5 thus formed by the upturned lip2 and its covering of canvas constitutes the inseam-receiving rib of the insole.

As stated above, leather-board in the natural condition in which it is supplied to the market is more or less spongy in character and will readily tear or split especially in a plane parallel to the face of the sheet so that if an attempt is made to channel leatherboard when in the condition in which it is purchased in the market, there will be a tendency for the sheet of leather-board to split in the plane in which it is channeled to form the upturned lip, and the lip, therefore, may be readily torn from the body of the insole. To avoid this difliculty, I propose to treat the leather-board before channeling in such a way as to toughen it and render it water-proof. I acomplish this by saturating the leather-board with a solution containing a water-proofing compound, such, for instance, as tallow and a binder or toughening compound, such as pitch.

I will also'preferably use a proper proportion of some suitable wax, such, for instance, as paraffin wax, as a filler. rPhe proportions of the tallow, pitch and wax mav be varied without departing from the invention. I find, however, that good results are secured by using fifty per cent. of pitch and about twenty-five per cent. of the tallow, and twenty-ive per cent. of the wax. The waterproofing mixture is made by melting and mixing together the above-recited ingredients in the desired proportions and the leather-board is treated by being dipped into the melted mixture while the latter is hot. This mixture will readily penetrate the pores of the leather-board and saturate the same. When it has been properly saturated, it is hung up to dry, after which it is ready for use in the manufacture of insoles. I will preferably carry out the drying out operation at a temperature of 120o F. or more.

The presence of the pitch in the mixture provides a binding agency' which holds the fibers of the leather-board together and thus toughens it, and this action is assisted by the presence of the tallow and wax. The latter also serve to fill the pores of the leatherboard and render it water-proof. A sheet of leather-board thus treated can be channeled, as shown in Fig. 2, without danger that the leathenboard Will split or tear vat the point fWhere the channeling occurs, and afterit is channeled thereinforcing layer 3 Will be f An insole of the type comprising a body 10 member channeled to form an upturned lipk and a reinforcing layerv of canvas appliedv to the channeled face thereof and embracing and secured to the lip, in which the body member is made of'zleather-board Which is saturated With a compound comprising tal- 15 loW, pitch and Wax in such proportions as to render it both Water-proof and sufficiently tough vso that it Will not readily ltear;orgrsplitYY in a plane parallel to the face thereof.

In testimony'vvhereof I have signed my 20 Iname to this specification, ,l f

y FREDERICK R. KII'IlIV Y Y Y y Gopiel of this paient may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatlel'its Y Washington, D. C. 

